IPC International Community magazine an association member publication
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44 I-CONNECT007 MAGAZINE I SEPTEMBER 2026 BY B R I A N B U Y E A , R E M T EC O ne question I hear more than almost any other is: How do I design electronics for high reliability? It's a fair question. In in- dustries like aerospace, defense, EV, and industri- al power, reliability isn't a feature; it's the product. When things fail, they don't just fail quietly. They fail catastrophically, expensively, and sometimes dan- gerously. The truth is that most reliability problems are not discovered in testing. They are designed in from the very beginning, and that's where engineers—good engineers—get it wrong. The Biggest Misconception About Reliability The most common mistake is thinking reliability is something you validate at the end. It's not. Reliabil- ity is not a test plan or a qualification cycle. It's not What Engineers Get Wrong About Designing for Reliability P OW E R I N G T H E F U T U R E